Sunday, May 27, 2007

Watching the F1 stars of tomorrow come up through the ranks, like Senna's nephew, is great fun.

IRL: Indy 500

I only watch three IRL races -- Indy 500 and the two road courses. The rest of the season takes place on ovals. Watching fast, open-wheel cars going round-and-round, full-throttle, is pathetic. Indy organizers claim the Indy 500 is the biggest sporting event in the world, with 400,000 in attendance. Three women are racing this year: Danica Patrick, Sara Fisher (sp?), and Milka Duno. Also, the 19-year-old Marco Andretti will be racing.

NASCAR: Coca Cola 600 in North Carolina

This is the longest race on the NASCAR schedule (out of 36 races). It's endurance racing at a sustained, 180mph. This year should be more interesting than most because Goodyear has brought a very hard tire. It lasts 90 laps, but the grip is extremely low, causing a lot of oversteer. The Cup cars have about 750hp and have poor aerodynamic downforce and mechanical grip -- putting them in high speed turns with the current tire is quite fun to watch. My pick to win: Matt Kenseth.

Rolex GT: Limerock Park, Connecticut

I've raced similar cars on this track with the GTR sim (simulates FIA GT) for the PC. It's probably the most fun I've had racing.